Cleaning touchscreens

Details Cleaning touchscreens Cleaning touchscreens

1998-07-01

2001-03-27

Mengistu, Amare (Department: 2773)

Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system

Display peripheral interface input device

Touch panel

C345S156000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06208331

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to touch screen devices and particularly to a method of cleaning touch screen devices.
2. Related Art
In touch screen devices, touching the touch screen display activates features and/or inputs data. The touch screen display contains a visual display of buttons or other target areas that indicate to the user where to touch the touch screen display to activate certain features of the touch screen device or to input certain information.
Repetitive touching of the touch screen display results in a build up of oil and dirt on the surface of the touch screen display. Therefore, it is necessary to periodically clean the touch screen display. However, the touch screen display must be touched to clean it, therefore, the act of cleaning the touch screen display results in activation of the touch screen device. Correspondingly, inadvertent activation of features of the touch screen device or unwanted input of data results from cleaning the touch screen display.
In the past, touch screen displays have been cleaned by removing power from the touch screen display. Further, U.S. Pat. No. 5,526,422 (hereafter “'422 patent”) describes a system and method for cleaning the touch screen display of a touch screen device contained on a telephone handset. In the '422 patent, the touch screen device enters a “clean screen” mode wherein the touch screen display is deactivated, however, information is kept on the touch screen display to provide status information to the users. This is not desirable because it is difficult to see where on the touch screen display there is oil and dirt, making it more difficult to clean the touch screen display. Furthermore, the touch screen device only exits from the “clean screen” mode when either the touch screen display has not been touched for a predetermined amount of time or when the telephone handset has transitioned from on-hook to off-hook. This is not desirable because the user may want to reactivate the touch screen display without the necessity of waiting a predetermined amount of time or waiting for the telephone handset to transition from on-hook to off-hook.
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The present invention is directed to a touch screen device with a feature being that the user can deactivate the touch screen display to clean the touch screen display without inadvertently activating a feature or inputting unwanted data by touching the touch screen display. The touch screen display is deactivated by entering a clean touch screen mode by activating a button on the touch screen display. When the touch screen device is in the clean touch screen mode, the touch screen display does not register any touches of the touch screen display other than simultaneous touches of opposite corners of the touch screen display. Therefore, the user can clean the touch screen display without inadvertently activating a feature or inputting unwanted data by touching the touch screen display.
When the touch screen device is in the clean touch screen mode, the touch screen display turns bright white, illuminating any oil or dirt that may be on the touch screen display. This allows the touch screen display to be more easily cleaned because the user can see where the dirt and oil are located and clean accordingly.
The user can then exit the clean touch screen mode and reactivate the touch screen display by any one of three methods. The user can touch any key on a keyboard attached to the touch screen device to reactivate the touch screen display. The user can also touch any two diagonally opposite corners of the touch screen display simultaneously to reactivate the touch screen display. Finally, the user can wait for a predetermined length of time until the clean touch screen mode times out and the touch screen display reactivates. Because the user has a number of options to reactivate the touch screen, the user can reactivate the touch screen at his or her convenience and continue activating features of the touch screen device or inputting data through the touch screen display.
These and other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, taken in conjunction with the appended drawings.


REFERENCES:
patent: 4992779 (1991-02-01), Sugino et al.
patent: 5526422 (1996-06-01), Keen
patent: 5537106 (1996-07-01), Mitsuhashi
patent: 8-263215 (1996-11-01), None

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